As a business leader, trying to predict the future is becoming infuriatingly difficult. The inconsistencies and contradictions often leave you perplexed in terms of your own business confidence and the forecasts you’re looking to make.
For instance, for the last few years many economists have predicted an imminent crash in the system, stimulated by international trade wars, Brexit in Europe, and the cyclical bursting of the economic bubble as we go beyond a decade since the global financial crash.
In the meantime, we’re seeing a record run of growth in the US economy, and the IMF shifting financial expectations up across the world. It seems to me that businesses are doing what they are good at; getting on with it, or taking care of business, if you will.
We’re much the same at Make Venues. Economically, we will look back on 2019 as another year of continuous growth for our business despite a very troubled marketplace. This is a continuation of incredibly strong growth for the preceding few years, each of which have been tricky to predict. What I’ve learned over that time is that, in an inconsistent market, those who stay consistent will do OK.
That’s why, for us, and for anyone else in the meetings and events marketplace looking to grow, quality will be the biggest mantra for 2020. Whether the economy takes a downturn or not, the one thing we can guarantee is that businesses want quality for money, as well as value.
When they spend, they want a result, they want to know that their investment is being cared for, and their faith respected.
We can do this in the meetings industry. We can show great care and deliver excellent customer service and quality products. We can show them how deeply we value their business, and build relationships based on consistency, as well as strength of relationship.
This approach has looked after us well at Make Venues. We’ve sat at the top of the BVA BDRC league tables for a very long time now, and we continue to receive recognition for the quality of what we do.
We see a direct result in terms of loyalty, repeat business, long-term bookings and continued investment. This has remained constant from the financial crisis over ten years ago, to the turbulence of 2019.
2020 will be no different I’m sure. Whichever way the wind blows, the businesses that focus on quality will flourish.